CANCER SURVIVAL TIPS

Blood-cleansing biospleen device developed for sepsis therapy

Things can go downhill fast when a patient has sepsis, a life-threatening condition in which bacteria or fungi multiply in a patient's blood — often too fast for antibiotics to help. A new device inspired by the human spleen and developed by a team at Harvard's Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering may radically transform the way doctors treat sepsis.

Pesticide linked to three generations of disease

Washington State University researchers say ancestral exposures to the pesticide methoxychlor may lead to adult onset kidney disease, ovarian disease and obesity in future generations.

“What your great-grandmother was exposed to during pregnancy, like the pesticide methoxychlor, may promote a dramatic increase in your susceptibility to develop disease, and you will pass this on to your grandchildren in the absence of any continued exposures,” says Michael Skinner, WSU professor and founder of its Center for Reproductive Biology.

New research published today in the journal Nature reveals an Achilles’ heel in the defensive barrier which surrounds drug-resistant bacterial cells.

The findings pave the way for a new wave of drugs that kill superbugs by bringing down their defensive walls rather than attacking the bacteria itself. It means that in future, bacteria may not develop drug-resistance at all.

Aspirin Recommendation for Heart Attack Prevention Withdrawn

The Food and Drug Administration withdrew its recommendation that all at-risk patients should take an aspirin a day.1 The Agency issued a statement saying, "The FDA has reviewed the available data and does not believe the evidence supports the general use of aspirin for primary prevention of a heart attack or stroke." The Agency further noted that, "there are serious risks associated with the use of aspirin, including increased risk of bleeding in the stomach and brain."

A 'disease' that went right from a PowerPoint to your doctor's office

A dozen years ago doctors had never heard of this now common ailment. That's because it was actually created by a drug company marketing genius just to sell more of his company's product. And now, this made-up disease is so well accepted that other risky "treatments" for it keep joining the profitability parade. Read more...